But the research has found it is more likely to lead to illnesses such as asthma or eczema later in life.
Researcher Melanie Matheson says there are other ways that women with allergies can reduce the chance of their child developing an allergy when they are older.
"Reducing the exposure to pets, to changing carpets so that there's floorboards rather than carpets in the home, vacuuming mattresses, those kind of interventions are probably going to be more effective in reducing your risk of developing allergies than perhaps breastfeeding will," she said.
Dr Matheson says the study confirms that high-risk infants should be exclusively breastfed to protect them against conditions like asthma and eczema when they are young.
But she says recommendations that breastfeeding protects against allergies in the long-term should be reconsidered.
Dr Matheson says the researchers still recommend breastfeeding in general.
"There are other benefits associated with breastfeeding beyond allergies and asthma, so we would recommend breastfeeding for sure, for women to continue to breastfeed their children," she said.
"We're just suggesting that it's not going to be protective against asthma and the development of allergies in the longer term." © 2007 Australian Broadcasting Corporation
